Maui: The Creator Of Polynesia

The Creator of Polynesia Polynesia is a vast, isolated part of the world whose history is blurred between science and fable, and whose culture is upheld to this day through the heritage of its ancient folklore. Because of the vast and largely folkloric culture of these islands, many characters are well represented throughout the oral history. One in particular is called Maui, whose misadventures and marvelous excursions are well documented in the traditional storytelling culture of the Polynesian people, from their creation up until their place in the present day (Wickersham 36.). Maui’s archetypal figure is best displayed in the stories where he raises the islands and beats the sun, where he is represented as a folkloric prototype throughout
Maui’s most important purpose is that of being an immature and somewhat juvenile figure, but in fact, his deeds are enacted in good morality and in the end they end up benefiting his people. He raises the land to create a homeland, a foundation for the Polynesian society, and he beat up the sun and lengthened daylight hours so his people had more sunlight to get stuff done such as harvest, cook, and fish. He also serves as an omnipresent and godlike figure by his almost supernatural and certainly far-fetched abilities that enable him to do what he does. This is seen when he manages to literally drag up the seafloor, and also when he pulls the sun out of the sky (Wickersham 36). It is important to know that Maui served for a good purpose, because on a surface level readers could make abortive predictions on Maui’s maturity and foolishness, when in reality his actions serve to benefit his people, no matter his personality or the methods he uses to accomplish what he does. This further cements him as representative of a trickster archetype because it shows how although his actions may sometimes seem asinine or counterproductive, his persona in the end develops into that of a hero and teacher, a figure that has been revered and venerated throughout his culture for millennia. One has to also realize that the actions of Maui that are documented serve to represent some more significant folkloric events in the history of Polynesia, and that the actions and the effects of these actions that he left behind stand as a foundation for the history of such a broad and diverse people (Moffett). His godlike aura and omnipresence as well as his stupendous and often implausible track record serve to further his incredibly significant trickster image and turn him into